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Crime Prevention an Approach that Has Been Paying Off for UC Students

UC Police are again stressing the issue of crime prevention to students as they return to campus this fall – and they have the numbers to back up how much that has helped the issue of safety in UC's urban environment. Serious crime on campus is down by 40 percent in the last five years.

Putting safety first will be a hard message to miss for students living in UC residence halls. It will be waiting for them in their doorways when they move in.

UC Police are planning a distribution of door-hangers detailing "Urban Living 101" to every dorm room on campus prior to student move-in. It offers reminders of safe practices that everyone can follow that will help decrease opportunities for crime and make UC a very safe campus.

Crime statistics for the university show such efforts are quite effective.

Despite what popular perceptions might be of safety in UC’s urban setting, crime has actually decreased quite dramatically in the last five years, according to UC Police Chief Gene Ferrara.

Since 2003, serious crimes – known by the FBI terminology as "Part 1 crimes" – have decreased on campus by 40.8 percent.

Over the same time period, the same class of crimes has fallen in surrounding off-campus areas by 24.6 percent.

Placing a high priority on crime prevention has also helped UC fare well in comparison to its peers.

Compared to 10 similar urban universities, the rate of personal crimes per 1,000 people at UC is 0.63. That is well below the average rate for the group, which is 0.82. Property crime at UC occurs at a rate of 1.62 per 1,000, significantly below the property crime rate average at the peer institutions of 4.09.

UC Police personnel will also be at the entranceways to university parking garages during the first three days of school, passing out another crime prevention reminder – the HABIT anti-auto theft reminder cards. Using UC football coach Brian Kelly as their spokesman, the cards offer tips to commuting students on what they can do to protect their cars and keep themselves from becoming an attractive target to car thieves.

For questions or more information on UC’s crime prevention efforts, contact Capt. Karen Patterson of UC Police at 513-556-4906.